Pakistan names team for South Africa tour

Islamabad, Jan 12 (IANS) The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced its 16-member national cricket team for the upcoming tour to South Africa starting later this month.

The selectors Friday retained Misbahul Haq as captain, besides calling back left-hand spinner Abdur Rehman after a limited period ban on him for a failed dope test, reports Xinhua.

Fast bowler Mohammad Irfan, who recently impressed in India, won a berth in the team to play Test matches against World No.1 South Africa.

The 30-year-old Irfan, who is said to be the tallest bowler in cricket history at seven foot one inch, has played two Twenty20 and five One-day Internationals (ODI) and is waiting for his Test debut.

Surprisingly, there was no place for any of the three Akmal brothers - Kamran, Umar and Adnan - in the Test team.

Uncapped left-hander Haris Sohail and Faisal Iqbal also succeeded in retaining their places in the squad while left-handed opener Nasir Jamshed was also selected.

Young pacer Ehsan Adil was also picked for the first time after his wonderful performance during the Under-19 World Cup in Australia last year and 56 wickets in 10 first-class matches this domestic season.

The Pakistani team will play three Test matches, two T20Is and five ODIs during the tour. The team will depart Jan 20 for South Africa and will start their tour with a four-day match against South African Invitation XI at Buffalo Park Jan 25.

Pakistani team's two-month tour will conclude March 24 with the fifth and final ODI match at Benoni.

The two separate squads for T20Is and ODIs, which follow the Test matches, will be announced later.

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